THE Queen wants taxpayers to cough up an extra £1million a year to repair Buckingham Palace.

This is on top of the £37.3million paid to the royals last year - even though the Queen's personal worth is estimated at £2billion. Aides say the roof needs fixing and that "large pieces" of stonework have fallen from walls - one narrowly missing Princess Anne's car.

They add that there is also a huge list of repairs at other royal homes, including Windsor Castle. Sir Alan Reid, Keeper of the Privy Purse, said: "If our historic buildings are to remain safe, it is essential that the grant is increased by £1million per year."

The Queen's annual finance report, published yesterday, blamed a rise in utility bills for soaking up a lot of royal cash.

Travel costs went up last year from £5.5million to £5.6million. The royal train was used 11 times - an average of £63,000 for each journey.

The most expensive official overseas trip was a chartered flight by Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to the Gulf and Bosnia in February and March, which cost £345,710.